BPO TRAINING: Quality Matters the Most

Right training for the right people is always good for business. Returns are well worth the effort

Thursday, March 11, 2004

The quality of service (QoS) depends on the type of training the employee receives and subsequently how
he implements his knowledge while working. This becomes particularly important in the Indian context
when there has been lot of criticism over the quality of service and training of the call center agents. In
initial days call centers companies saw training as a burden on their revenue and preferred giving ‘some’
in-house training. However, slowly the need for specialist trainers was realized and training today, has
been developed as an integral part of the whole process.

 To Outsource Training or Not: The BPO industry is still evolving and people are experimenting with
various models to draw a feasible training structure. Most of the big companies have made their training
section a part of the human resource department and onsite training is preferred than sending their
agents to a external center.

However, a mixture of both outsourced and in-house training schedule makes perfect combination and
financially viable for the BPO companies.

Outsourced training may have two streams:

 Outsourced-onsite Training: In this the trainer is provided by the training company but the classes is
conducted within the premises of the call center. This model has been popular as it reduces the headache
of supporting training staff and developing course material. The call center HR just has to monitor the
quality of training being given and at the end of the day pay fees to the training company.

 Complete Outsourcing: Outsourcing training completely means that a training agency is hired and
either the recruited agents would be sent to the agency for further grooming or the agency trains and
then company picks the candidate. But this model has not gained popularity as BPO firms have difficulty in
monitoring the quality of training. In case of pre-trained agents, often the training given is not up to the
mark or is not relevant to the company.

However, many call centers have their own trainers and have developed their own course material to suit
their needs. Companies like North Star Call Center College started as a training institute, and entered into
call center business. Their students get absorbed in their call center. But for large BPO firms maintaining
trainers and developing course material means deviating from their core competency and this model does
not make good business strategy either.

It makes more sense for a company to outsource their initial training, which is conducted onsite, and have
a few in-house trainers for subsequent skill enhancements. This model also leaves the company free to
focus on their service provider business than struggle to update course materials. In telemarketing and
product-specific outsourced services, it is better for the vendor to give product specific training.

 Training Modules: Every training course keeps in mind that degree of skill requirement varies
according to calls being handled and situations being tackled. The task of the trainer is to provide those
skills to the agents on a varying scale. This scale has to be adjusted not only as per the needs of the call
centers, but also that of the individual.

The degree and type of training would vary for domestic or offshore call centers. The scales would tilt
further according to the diverse cultural background of the country from where the call originates.

A training plan has its priorities set according to the requirements and ideally, would be categorized into
‘must know’ (vital information that the trainees need in order to do the job effectively) or ‘should know’
(the knowledge which is useful but not essential to the job) sections.

The ‘should know’ training of an agent is almost the same for all call centers. The first step for a call-
center fresher would be the induction orientation. He will then graduate to culture-training module.
Culture training depends on the clients that he would be dealing with and helps in acclimatizing and
empathizing with the customer’s lifestyle.

Then comes the training in voice and accent. For Indian agents, learning an accent is not the first priority.
Rather he needs more of accent neutralization. By the time a graduate joins the BPO industry, it is very
difficult to teach him the grammar of foreign languages as well as train him in accent. At the most, he can
be trained not to let his mother accent take over, while speaking to a customer. India has the first mover
advantage of knowledge of other languages, but the accent still needs to be modified according to the
client requirements.

The next module is the campaign training. This is a process that never ends and the agents are constantly
updated on the current campaign. Campaign training is attached to the product being offered and is often
conducted by the clients or the vendors themselves. Regular trainers are also used for this module but
they have to be familiarized with the campaign first.

 Quality and Standard of Course Material: Though the need to have the content certified has been
felt across the industry, as of now, there is no government or private authority which monitors or
regulates the course content. Creating such an authority will improve the quality of training, but there is
no immediate plan or move to create such a body.

Initially, most of the course material was developed abroad, but now foreign course modules form the
base on which India-specific courses have been developed. This has been done by the training institutes
and each one claims that their course complies with the industry standards.

The basic training modules would not change, but there is always a scope to improve the training aids and
methods. Some agencies have adopted the latest software, which scans the facial movements and
suggests ways to improve the accent. Interactive and practical techniques have been introduced to give
the agent a feel of things before he is put on the job. And as the market matures and demand for better
training arises, the industry will adopt newer methods.

 Training Never Stops: The traditional wisdom says training is an ongoing process and is never
completed. The BPO companies have to find strategic alternatives to outsource training. Realizing that
very qualified students will are not likely to make make this a career, companies are preferring people
with low skill set and trying to train and retain them in the outsourcing business.

This poses another challenge as far as training goes. The intensity and the style of training have been
changed accordingly. For this trainers have to be specialists with a high level of understanding of the job.
As the market matures, an academy to train and certify trainers is also being recommended. A good call-
center agent needs to have the 7 Ps of tele-services—being prompt, prepared, professional, polite,
precise, practical, and positive.

Learn to Solve the Problem

In the business process outsourcing sector, the middle management—team leaders or shift heads
upwards—have shied away from being trained. This in-turn has affected the performance of the
agents. A common trend among BPO firms is to promote the best agent as the team leader and he
gets trapped between his agent mindset and pressures to improve the process for efficiency. If the
training is taken out of the subject specific mould and instead process specific training is given, then
the employee can be trained to fit in the larger picture instead of being tied to one project. If a
person knows the process he will devise ways and means to resolve a problem as and when they
arise instead of looking for a trainer to teach him how to wriggle out of the issues.

The training modules must not be prepared with the buyer or the client in mind. Rather long-term
planning must be done keeping in mind the future of the market. If one understands how business
will shape up in the future, he will be in a better position to train his staff for better returns on his
investments. Also, availability of cheap labor should not be an excuse to hire more agents than
necessary. As efficiency takes the center-stage, over manning would not work in the long run.